Who is Tully Hart's dad?

One of Firefly Lane‘s biggest mysteries is the identity of Tully’s biological father. Tully has always asked Cloud to tell her about her dad, and Cloud has remained coy. But in Firefly Lane season 2 part 1, we finally get answers.

After leaving The Girlfriend Hour, Tully needs to find a new career path. She decides to make a documentary special following her journey to meet her dad. Cloud is initially reluctant to help, but she does eventually come around.

Major spoilers ahead for Firefly Lane season 2 part 1

The beginning of season 2 part 1 implies that gubernatorial candidate Benedict Binswanger (played by newcomer Greg Germann) is Tully’s dad, but the truth is much sadder.

Tully’s biological father is actually Benedict Binswanger’s brother, PJ Binswanger. PJ owns a restaurant called PJ Pelican’s, a place she’s visited several times across the decades to find her dad. But when she visits again in the 2000s as part of the documentary, Tully learns from PJ’s wife that PJ had died six weeks prior.

However, we do find out that Tully did meet PJ once in the 1980s while visiting the restaurant to find Benedict. Neither she nor PJ knew they were related, but they did share a sweet moment, with PJ gifting Tully an aloe plant to help her after she is burned by a coffee spill.

Cloud always believed PJ had sent her a letter abandoning her, but PJ’s wife reveals that Benedict had meddled in Cloud and PJ’s relationship. In reality, Benedict sent a letter to Cloud pretending to be PJ, and then he sent a letter to PJ pretending to be Cloud claiming she’d had an abortion.

It wasn’t until years later that PJ and his wife figured out that Tully was his daughter after reading an article in the newspaper and doing some quick math. Unfortunately, PJ died before he had mustered up the courage to reach out.

Candian actor Mark Humphrey plays Tully’s biological father in Firefly Lane season 2. You might recognize him from the Canadian television series E.N.G. or the 2006 movie The Wives He Forgot, which he starred in opposite Molly Ringwald. Humphrey also starred in the Hallmark Channel series When Calls the Heart, where he played Frank Hogan. Most recently, the actor appeared in the made-for-TV Christmas movie When I Think of Christmas.

Firefly Lane season 2 part 1 is now streaming on Netflix.